MPI Autopac – Manitoba

Your vehicle is much more than an investment in your life; it’s your freedom. Let us help navigate what auto insurance is right for you. When you buy car insurance in Manitoba, you will be purchasing basic mandatory coverage which is provided by Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI), sold through us either by email, phone or in person at any of our Manitoba locations.

As your local insurance experts, we know that each vehicle in Manitoba is unique in its own way. From those who commute to work in Winnipeg every day, to those who are out on the prairie open road catching sunset views, we’ve got you covered.

We understand it’s vital to protect what’s most important to you and your family. Our expert insurance advisors are here to ensure you’re protected and provide peace of mind so you can focus on what’s important in your life.

MPI Autopac Renewal

Online MPI Renewal

As we all know, life gets busy. The MPI car insurance renewal reminder comes in the mail and goes into the “gotta take care of this” pile. Check out our Online MPI Renewal form today!

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Let us find the best insurance package and rates for you! Get a quote online in minutes. Connect with us over the phone at 1-888-452-7165, or visit one of our convenient locations. Click here to find a Westland Insurance advisor close to you.

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Why Choose Westland?

We know that your insurance needs to match your goals, your lifestyle and your budget.  Our expert auto insurance advisors get to know you, so that they can tailor a policy to your exact needs.

We’ll find the best coverage for you at the right price so that you can continue to live your life the way you want to.

Insurance can be complex sometimes. Let our expert insurance advisors do the heavy lifting! We’ll help you find a policy that you feel is the best fit and provides peace of mind. To learn more about the benefits of being a Westland client, click here.

MPI Auto Insurance Explained

Autopac is the mandatory coverage for all vehicles in Manitoba provided through Manitoba Public Insurance. This product is called Autopac. Note, there are significant changes to the Autopac product effective April 2021. To learn more, read our blog highlighting all changes. Autopac includes financial protection for the following:

  • loss or damage of your vehicle from insured events such as collision, upset, vandalism, theft, hail and fire.
  • Limited $500,000 third party liability coverage (which is not sufficient if you should travel outside of Manitoba).
  • Personal Injury Protection Plan (PIPP) which provides every Manitoban with benefits in the event of injury or death, regardless of who was at fault in an accident.

In addition to this basic, mandatory coverage, there are many extended and optional coverages that you can select from, depending on your personal situation. From lowering your deductible, increasing liability and getting enhanced wage protection coverage, you can build out the car insurance policy that reflects you and the use of your vehicle. Read on to learn more about MPI’s Autopac products. Note that many extension and optional coverages are available from private insurance companies as well. Read more here.

Yes! If you fill out our online quotation form we can assist with MPI Autopac quotes. One of our auto advisors will be in touch to check your details and provide you with an MPI insurance quote. To get a better idea of what insurance will cost for a specific vehicle, check out MPI’s Insurance Rate Calculator.

Yes! We can assist you with MPI Autopac insurance renewals and renewing your driver’s license before it expires.

MPI offer a number of Autopac payment options. As Autopac agents, Westland can take payment over the phone or by email.

We all have deductibles for our car insurance in Manitoba, but do you really know what you’re covered for? Many people chose their deductible years ago and keep it the same each renewal year. Here’s everything you need to know about deductibles to ensure that you’re properly covered!

Starting off simple, a deductible is an amount that you have to pay when making a claim regarding damage or theft of your vehicle. So, if you have a $200 deductible for example and you have a fender bender, you have to pay that $200 in order to get your vehicle repaired. Since some repairs can be very costly, deductibles save us a lot of money in order to get the repairs needed at a reasonable cost. The basic deductible in Manitoba is $750, which is included in all basic vehicle policies. You can choose to buy down your deductible, which means you will pay slightly more for your insurance but less at the time of a loss. The table below shows these options at a glance.

Look at it this way, the lower the deductible, say $200 Plus, the more it will cost annually, however, the more perils (risks) covered. Alternatively, if you choose a higher deductible such as the basic $750 it will cost less annually but fewer perils are covered and it can lead to being more expensive if you have to submit claims. Tip: if you have multiple claims such as a windshield that needs to be replaced and as well as vandalism from a separate incident, you have to pay for both deductibles. Needless to say, it can add up.

This table is great for explaining what you get for each deductible option.

Type of Claim Basic Coverage Extension 1 Extension 2 Extension 3
($200 Standard)
Extension 4
($200 Plus)
COLLISION $750 $500 $300 $200 $200
THEFT $750 $500 $300 $0 $0
GLASS REPLACEMENT $750 $500 $300 $200 $200
GLASS REPAIR $750 $500 $300 $200 $0
COLLISION WITH ANIMAL $750 $500 $0 $0 $0
VANDALISM $750 $500 $300 $200 $0
COMPREHENSIVE (FIRE, PARTIAL THEFT OF VEHICLE, HAIL) $750 $500 $300 $200 $200

Depending on what is most important to you or the types of driving you’re doing will impact what deductible you choose. For example, if you are doing a lot of highway driving you may want to stay away from the basic $750 deductible since if you do happen to have damage to your vehicle due to an animal you will have to pay $750 opposed to lower deductibles in which it is covered with a $0 deductible. If you have a lower deductible all you would have to do in that instance is put the claim in with MPI and it would be repaired. Now let’s imagine you live in downtown Winnipeg and do minimal highway driving. Collision with an animal is not going to be very likely, however, vandalism might be. In that case, you may want to look into the $200 Plus deductible as vandalism requires $0 to put in the claim.

The next question on everyone’s mind, and the answer is…it depends. Your deductible premium is mostly based on the premium rating on your vehicle. All vehicles are lumped into the specific make and model based on many factors such as the cost of parts if repair is needed, past statistics on accidents, as well as other factors. Another factor that is used to determine the price is your driver safety rating. This is the number of merits or demerits that you have. The more merits the higher the discount. Alternatively, if you don’t have any merits you will not receive a discount. It definitely pays to drive safe! If you are thinking about purchasing a vehicle and are curious about how much the insurance will cost, you can use MPI’s insurance calculator which will give you an idea of what you can expect.

Your deductible applies when you need to submit a claim or have a claim submitted by another Autopac insured driver. Whether that is paying your deductible to get your windshield replaced or you have significant car damage, your deductible applies to all. Each incident of loss requires a deductible. For example, if you have a crack in your windshield and then someone sideswipes your vehicle that would require two claims be entered and therefore two deductibles.

If you are in an accident with another Autopac insured driver who is found to be at fault, MPI will reimburse your deductible. If the accident is found to be 50/50 fault, you will get half of your deductible back.

If the accident is found to be 50/50 fault, each party will pay their deductible.

Yes, if it is determined that you’re at fault for the accident you will be required to pay for your deductible.

Ultimately the decision is up to you. You know your driving history and past experience the best. It may make sense to stick with the basic deductible based on the use of the vehicle, or in some cases, it may make more sense to purchase a lower deductible for a car that is being used on a more regular basis. Keep in mind if you are choosing to reduce your coverage you will be charged a $15 reduction fee. Whatever you choose, make sure you are properly covered! If you have further questions don’t hesitate to contact us. We would love to help you out with your insurance needs and questions!

Have you always paid the same way for your insurance and never thought anything of it? There may be a better way to purchase your insurance that can save you some money! First off let’s look at the difference between a short-term policy (30-day minimum to 244-day maximum) and annual. Short-term policies can be beneficial to those who don’t need continuous coverage, however, if you keep renewing every month or so you could end up paying much more in the end. Here’s why: every time you create a policy there is a $15 admin fee that is charged, whether that a short-term or annual. If you come in every month and renew your short-term policy, you are paying $15 each time as opposed to paying it only once with an annual policy. Switching to an annual policy could save you $165 per year.

If you carry a short-term policy and only need coverage for a specified period of time, here are a few things to note. First, short-term policies are non-refundable. Meaning that if you were waiting to sell your car and bought two months of insurance and sold it a week later, you will not get that money back. Second, all short-term policies have to be paid in full. Finally, you will not receive any renewal reminder that your insurance is due therefore it is up to the customer to remember when insurance runs out.

If you choose an annual policy, you have three options for payment:

1. Annual In Full

  • Pay for the full year in advance without any interest charges

2. 4 Pay Installments

  • Pay for the year in parts
  • First payment will be the day the policy is renewed followed by three payments
  • First payment will be renewal date
  • Second will be 2 months from renewal date
  • Third will be 5 months from renewal date
  • Fourth will be 8 months from renewal date
  • Interest charged is prime + 2%
  • Note: the first payment is always a little higher than the next three equalized payments

3. Monthly Payments

  • Pre-authorized payment on the same date each month
  • You can leave it as the default withdrawal date or choose a specific date of the month
  • Can only be set up to come out of your bank account
  • Interest charged is prime + 2%
  • Note: if a payment defaults twice in a row you will be charged a $20 late fee
  • Note: the first payment is always a little higher than the next three equalized payments. If a payment is missed there is a $20 late fee.

Another part of your auto policy is third party liability. In short, it covers you for property damage you may cause as well as vehicle damage anywhere in North America. In Manitoba, property damage is covered through your third party liability and responds for accidents resulting in rebuilding costs, lost wages and structural damages. Did you know that if you travel outside of Manitoba, you can be sued for bodily injury? In Manitoba, we have PIPP (personal injury protection program) which means that we cannot sue each other for bodily injury. If you are in an accident outside of Manitoba, whether another province or the United States, you can be sued which in certain circumstances could be a large sum of money.

Third party liability is the portion of your insurance coverage that protects you if you’re held legally responsible for an injury due to an accident or damage to property. This helps cover the costs of legal fees, money to settle a lawsuit and other expenses related up to the limits identified in your policy.

Included in your basic insurance policy is $500,000 third party liability with the option to increase to up to 10 million. Depending on the use of your vehicle you may feel confident leaving your TPL at the basic amount. If you choose to keep it at the minimum and have an accident that is over and above $500,000 you will personally be responsible for paying the difference. For example, you could be driving down an icy road, not far-fetched in Manitoba, and lose control and run into a business’s building. Rebuilding costs, lost wages, structural damages and more could easily cost more than $500,000. If you had higher liability you would be better covered and less likely to have to pay out of pocket.

You are able to purchase excess TPL in the sum of $1, 2, 5, 7 or 10 million. If you are travelling out of province or to the United States, it would be wise to purchase higher liability due to the fact that you can be sued for bodily injury as well as property damage. These extension products are the least expensive compared to the rest of your policy. Keep in mind if you do have a discount you will be paying less per year than the figures below.

TPL Extension

Cost per Year

$1 million         $10

$2 million        $14

$5 million        $22

$7 million        $25

$10 million      $27

First party is the insured, so yourself. Second party is the insurer, for example if we are referring to auto insurance this would be MPI. Third party is the person who is bringing legal action against the insurer. Therefore, if you lose control and drive into a business building, that business owner is now the third party in the equation.

Yes, if you are renting a vehicle and get insurance through MPI, you automatically are covered for $10 million liability.

Choosing your TPL will depend on where and how often you are using your vehicle and ultimately your comfort level. You can always increase your TPL if you are leaving the province, however, it will cost $15 to reduce your coverage.

Third party liability insurance is mandatory on all basic MPI policies, so no matter what you will carry $500,000. To increase your coverage, stop into one of our offices and we can bump up the coverage to a comfort level that works for you.

It is so important to understand what you are liable for and how you can be properly covered! Stop in and say hi either online or at one of our eight Manitoba locations and we would be happy to help you find the best coverage for you.

Do you take your vehicle to work every day? Do you take public transportation? Is your vehicle sitting during certain seasons? There are different types of vehicle use that will affect your annual premium. Here’s some more info on each to ensure you have the proper use selected for your lifestyle.

1. Merits vs. Demerits

We’ve heard it before, a good driving record is important. Especially when determining insurance premium rates. If you have merits, you will have a discount on both your drivers licence as well as your insurance rates. The more merits, the higher the discount. If you’re at the max of 15 merits, you can get up to 33% discount. If you have demerits you will receive no discount on your premium.

2. Location

Your location and where you live also determines how much you pay. Manitoba is broken up into four territories. All territories other than one, which is Winnipeg, are charged a lesser rate. This is due to a lower volume of people on the road which leads to fewer accidents, along with a greater statistic of vandalism and theft. If you commute from any of the areas outside of the city limits of Winnipeg identified by MPI, you will have to pay the commuter rate. As your vehicle is in territory one risk areas, you will pay the same rate as others in the Winnipeg territory.

3. Use of Vehicle

All Purpose

  • Exactly what it sounds like; you are not restricted from any vehicle use
  • Most people who have this are those going to or from (or part way) to work, school or for business purposes on a regular basis

Pleasure

  • Restricts your vehicle use to going to work no more than four times a month or 1,609 km during a rating term
  • Can’t be used for business purposes
  • Able to drive dependants to school but those who are driving themselves to school would not classify as pleasure use
  • Most people who have this are those who are retired, stay at home parent or on maternity leave, or those who take other forms of transportation to work or school

Common Carrier

  • This is for vehicles used by couriers or common carriers
  • Most people who have this are conducting deliveries in connection to a business
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